Dusty Harp Pickup for lever harps

q P10 for 24 30 string harps q P20 for 32 40 string harps Dusty Harp Pickup for lever harps Installation Kit Contents and Diagram of Pickup A. Pickup Element B. Grommet C. Pickup Harness D. Jack E. F. Pickup Locating Template Short Clips (P10-3, P20-4) G. Tall Clips (P20 3) H. Super Glue I. ½" Wrench J. Jack-Tightening Pin K. Pressure Stick/Ruler L. Lead Wires A B C J L D G K F Tools Required: Awl Pencil Damp Cloth Masking Tape E I H Optional: Drill ½ Brad Point Drill Bit (available from Dusty Strings) Read This Before You Start! Thank you for choosing the Dusty Harp Pickup! While we developed the pickups and instructions specificially for Dusty Strings harps, they have been successfully installed in numerous other makes and models with great success. Before you begin, please read the instructions all the way through and pay special attention to the principles outlined below. This will ensure a smooth installation process and optimal pickup performance, and will be especially helpful if installing the pickup in a non-dusty harp, where some of our more specific placement instructions may not apply. Anything that is not securely attached can create a buzz, and any hard surface that is lightly touching another hard surface can cause a rattle. Make sure the harness clips are not touching any part of the harp except where they are stuck on. Don t put them close enough to buzz against the soundboard or braces. Don t attach them to the soundboard if at all possible. Make sure the lead wires are not resting on the soundboard. Regardless of how you install the jack, make sure all the internal and external nuts are snug, and make sure the jack is either securely attached to the harp or at the very least cushioned so it can t buzz against the harp body. Clean the surface of the harp at every adhesive attachment point, even if it doesn t look dirty. A little bit of dust can interfere with the adhesive bond, resulting in loose components later on. While we recommend testing pickup placement with double-stick tape on non-dusty harps, it s not a great longterm solution. Tape can come loose, and also weakens the signal, resulting in less-than-optimal tone and volume. 1

Step 1: Prepare the Harp Installation Instructions 1. Lay your harp so the soundboard is parallel to the floor, with the soundholes facing up (see figure 1). It is important to get the soundboard as level as you can. Prop your harp up securely, with a carpet or other padded surface under the pillar and the base. 2. Use a slightly damp rag to wipe any dust or debris off of the inside of the soundboard and the soundboard lining along the left side of the harp. This will help to ensure the pickup elements and harness clips adhere well. 3. For Ravenna models with a drop-down leg installed, fully extend the leg to get it out of the way. Step 2: Drill Jack Hole Figure 1 Prop up the harp If you don t want to drill a hole in your harp, the Dusty Pickup Jack Clamp may be used as a secure and removable alternative. See more at www.dustystrings.com. If you have a Ravenna harp, it may have a pre-drilled hole, which would be on the left quarter stave on the back of the harp, covered by a plastic cap. If you have a pre-drilled hole, you can skip the drilling step. 1. Find the center of the jack hole for your harp in the table below. Ravenna 26 & Ravenna 34 Left Quarter Stave, 1½" up from base and centered on the panel left to right 1½" FH26 & Allegro 26 Center of back, 1⅛" below bottom sound hole 1⅛" Crescendo 34, FH34, Crescendo 32 & FH32 Center of back, 4" below bottom sound hole 4" FH36S, FH36H & FH36B Center of back, 5" below bottom sound hole 5" 2. 3. Using an awl, mark the position of the center of the hole on the back of the harp. Place a paper towel inside the harp under the hole location to collect dust and wood chips from drilling. Caution: When drilling, use gentle pressure to avoid chipping out the back of the hole and to prevent the drill from plunging through and damaging the soundboard. 4. Carefully drill a hole with a ½" brad-point drill bit (see figure 3). Be sure to keep the drill bit perpendicular to the surface of the harp. 5. After drilling, make sure the inside edge of the hole is free of splinters. Note: Using a brad-point drill bit is important. This type of bit centers the hole and holds the bit in place, helping to prevent damage caused by the drill bit sliding on the surface of the harp. It can also help to ensure that the hole doesn t get wowed out as you drill. If needed, ½" brad-point bits are available from Dusty Strings. 2 Brad-point drill bit Figure 3 Drill bits Standard drill bit

Step 3: Mark Pickup Element Locations 1. Find the paper pickup locating template. Poke an awl or a nail through any circles that are labeled for your harp model. 2. Fold the template on the dotted line near its pointed end. Tape the fold flat. 3. Slide the template into the harp through the bottom soundhole, folded end first. 4. Place the template on the soundboard with the edge against the soundboard lining on the left side of the harp. The lining is the strip of wood that covers the joint between the soundboard and the side of the harp. Position the template so the folded end points directly at the highest F (blue) string (see figure 4). Tape the template in place. (If you have a non-dusty harp, see the sidebar on the right for more info.) 5. Mark a pencil dot directly on the soundboard through each of the holes you made in the template, or at the ends of the arrows if the circles don t apply to your harp model. lining Step 4: Mark Harness Clip Locations 1" Figure 4 Marking Template pointing at high F Note: The P10 pickup uses three short harness clips. The P20 usually uses four short clips, but there are a few exceptions. When installing a P20 in a Dusty Strings FH36S, only three short clips are used. When installing the P20 in a non-dusty harp with internal body ribs, taller harness clips may be required to clear the ribs. Three tall clips are included in the P20 kit for this reason. 1. For all Dusty Strings models except FH36S: Mark an X on the soundboard lining approximately 1 toward the base of the harp from each element location (see figure 4). This location is approximate, and can be adjusted as needed. 2. For FH36S only: You will install three clips on the small finger braces running perpendicular to the soundboard lining (see figure 5). 3. For non-dusty harps: You will need to use your judgement to place the clips in locations that make sense for that particular harp. Just make sure the main harness can stay relatively straight, the clips are not stuck to the soundboard or positioned close enough to buzz against the soundboard or other parts of the harp, and you re not placing the harness so far from the elements that it creates stress on the lead wires. 3 Testing Pickup Placement in a Non-Dusty Harp Before gluing the pickup elements to the soundboard of a non-dusty Strings harp, we advise using double-stick tape to temporarily place the elements on the outside of the soundboard, using the template so you can find the same locations when you permanently install the pickup inside. Then, plug into your amplifier and see how it sounds. You can tweak the sound a bit by adjusting the positions of the elements. Generally, moving the pickups toward the middle of the soundboard will increase the signal strength (loudness) and moving them toward the side of the harp will decrease the signal strength. Find the balance that is best for your harp. Be aware that the overall signal strength will be diminished by using the double-stick tape. There will be a much stronger signal once the elements are glued in and the glue has cured. For some lever harps like the Lyon and Healy Ogden, which has the more robust bracing and higher-tension strings of a pedal harp, you may get better results with the pickup elements positioned further toward the center of the soundboard. As a starting point, we recommend placing the paper template against the string rib instead of against the lining, and making your pencil dots on the outside of the template (see figure 4A). Pencil dot here String Rib Figure 4A Alternate template placement for L&H Ogden lining Figure 5 FH36S Clip Location Harness clip Finger brace

4. Carefully remove the template from inside the harp. 5. You should now have 3 or 4 (depending on model) clearly visible pencil dots on the soundboard and corresponding X marks for the harness clips on the lining. Step 5: Attach Harness Clips Note: Please read this section completely before attaching clips. 1. Place a paperclip or thin coin on the soundboard under the lining lowest X mark on the soundboard lining to act as a spacer. This is to prevent the harness clip from touching the soundboard and causing unwanted vibration. 2. Remove the paper backing from the self-adhesive patch on one of the harness clips. 3. Orient the angled corners away from the soundboard and use Spacers the spacer to position the bottom edge of the clip up off the soundboard (see figure 6). Figure 6 Spacers 4. Firmly press the clip into place over the X on the soundboard lining, keeping it as square to the soundboard as possible. The clip may be wider than the lining, and this is okay. 5. Remove the spacer. 6. Repeat for the remaining clips. Step 6: Attach Pickup Harness 1. Slide the pickup harness up through the bottom sound hole, being careful to avoid dragging or bumping the jack against the harp. 2. Orient the harness so the pickup element lead wires point toward the string rib, away from the side of the harp (see figure 7 on next page). 3. Slide the rubber grommets on the harness so that they align with the clips while allowing the pickup elements to line up with the marks on the soundboard. 4. Press the rubber grommets into the clips. The groove in each grommet should snap into place in the arms of the clip. It is not necessary to twist the clips ears together. 5. If your particular installation leaves you with an extra grommet (this will be the case with the FH36S), you can either leave it alone, or you can very carefully cut it off with a sharp blade, diagonal cutter, or scissors. (See next page) 4

Step 7: Glue Pickup Elements in Place Caution: Once the elements are glued on, they are very difficult to remove without damaging the pickup or the soundboard. Be sure to practice using the tools as described in the sidebar at right. 1. Starting with the top pickup element, follow this sequence: a. Apply the super glue to the pencil dot. b. Keeping the pickup element parallel to the sound- board (to ensure an even thickness of glue) press the pickup down firmly and quickly onto the super glue and hold in place with the provided pressure stick. c. Important: Hold firmly for two minutes, without moving the pickup element. To ensure a complete glue bond, we recommend using a timer to make sure you hold for a full two minutes. d. The lead wire should naturally curve away from the soundboard (see figure 7). If necessary, adjust the pickup harness in the clips to ensure that the lead wires won t touch the soundboard and cause unwanted vibration. e. For all Dusty Strings harp models except the FH36S, the pickup element lead wire will bend upward, toward the top of the harp (see figure 7). f. For the FH36S, because the harness clips attach to the finger braces instead of the soundboard lining, the pickup element lead wires will bend downward, toward the bottom of the harp (see figure 8). 2. Proceed with the next pickup, and so on, until all are done. Practice manipulating and placing the element 1. Hold a pickup element by its lead wire, and guide it into position in the air over the pencil dot, parallel to the soundboard surface. It s best to drop the element directly onto the glue dot rather than sliding it along the soundboard. Sliding can be messy and may interfere with the strength of the glue bond. 2. Position the element shiny side down, and practice using the pressure stick to press the pickup element down onto the soundboard. 3. A useful trick, especially when it s difficult to get both hands inside the harp, is to use double-stick tape or poster putty to attach the element to the pressure stick. Then you can use the stick to position the element instead of your hands. Once the glue has cured for two minutes, you ll be able to remove the stick without pulling the element back up again. 4. Work with this until you have a feel for manipulating and positioning the elements. Practice controlling glue 1. Find the super glue practice dots located on the Pickup Locating Template. 2. Touch the tip of the tube to the paper and squeeze out just enough glue to fill the circle. This should be less than a drop. This is enough glue to bond the entire surface of the pickup to the soundboard without excess that will run and soak into the soundboard. Try to be as neat as possible. 3. When you have a feel for the right amount of glue, begin gluing the pickups in place. Finger brace Top of harp Top of harp Pickup element lead wire String rib Pickup element String rib Figure 7 Pickup Element Installation Figure 8 FH36S Pickup Element and Lead Wire Dusty Strings 3450 16th Ave. W., Seattle, WA 98119 Toll Free 866-634-1656 www.dustystrings.com 5

Step 8: Install the Jack Note: If you have also purchased the Dusty Harp Jack Clamp, follow the included Jack Clamp instructions instead for installing the jack and fitting the clamp on your harp. 1. Remove the tip nut, the retaining nut, and the outer washer from the jack (see figure 9a). Leave the lock washer, inner washer, and inner nut in place. 2. Reach inside the harp and carefully push the end of the jack up through the hole you drilled in the back of the harp. Adjust the inner nut so the step to the wider threads sits about ¹ ₁₆" (1.5mm) below the outer surface of the harp body (see figure 9b). 3. Put the outer washer on the jack followed by the retaining nut (see figure 9c). Snug down the retaining nut fingertight. The jack should be firmly held in place. If the jack is loose in the hole, loosen the retaining nut and adjust the inner nut so that the outer washer and retaining nut can fully seat against the surface of the harp. 4. Place the ½" wrench on the retaining nut. Insert the jack-tightening pin through the cross-drilled hole in the threads of the jack. Hold the jack in position with the pin and use the ½" wrench to firmly tighten the retaining nut (see figure 9d). 5. Screw on the tip nut finger-tight. If correctly installed, the end of the threaded portion of the jack should be slightly visible in the chamfer at the end of the tip nut (see figure 9e). Your cable plug needs to be able to make a firm connection with the jack; it should snap distinctly into place when inserted. If the threaded portion of the jack is too far inside the tip nut, the cable can be stopped by the tip nut before it makes a good connection with the jack. If this is the case, you will need to remove the tip nut, loosen the retaining nut, adjust the position of the inner nut so that the end of the jack barrel is very slightly farther out, and retighten the retaining nut. Figure 9 Jack components and installation Inner washer Tip nut Lock washer Wider threads Step Inner nut Lock washer Outer washer Inner nut Retaining nut Outer washer Figure 9a Jack components Surface of harp Figure 9b Jack installation Inner washer Retaining nut Figure 9c Jack installation Tip nut Figure 9d Tighten the jack End of jack Figure 9e Optimal alignment Chamfer Step 9: Test Plug the pickup system into an amplifier and lightly tap the backside of the soundboard near each pickup element to make sure each is giving a signal. You can play your harp and use the pickup safely, but avoid moving or jostling your harp for 24 hours. The tone and signal strength will improve over the next day as the super glue cures to full hardness. Congratulations! Now the installation process is complete. Please call us with any questions. Dusty Strings 3450 16th Ave. W., Seattle, WA 98119 Toll Free 866-634-1656 www.dustystrings.com 6 rev. 5/29/18